Tiny as they are, bats have the ability to “see” in the dark by using a special skill called echolocation (回声定位法).They make noises and wait for sound waves, or an echo, to bounce back off objects. They can tell the distance of various objects by how quickly the sound waves bounce back off them. If no sound bounces back, they can then fly forward.
This special ability has been copied in the human world for a long time, such as in submarines and planes. But apart from helping vehicles “see” where they are, what if blind people could use echolocation for themselves? American Daniel Kish, who is blind, is known as “Batman”. This isn’t because he walks around in a cape (披风)and a mask, but because he has a bat-like ability to locate where he is through sharp clicks he makes by moving his tongue against the roof of his mouth. Kish is so skilled at echolocating that he can ride a bike and hike on his own.
Recently, a research carried out at the University of Durham in England shed some light on the power of human echolocation. Kish, as well as other volunteers, worked with a group of scientists who studied the way blind people listen to the echoes that they produce from clicks. The team found that people were capable of hearing even very faint echoes, ones far fainter than had been previously thought.
Lore Thaler, lead scientist of the group, said, “We found that in some conditions, they were really faint—about 95 percent softer than the actual clicks, but the echolocators were still able to sense this.”
Andrew Kolarik, another expert in echolocation, told BBC News that echolocation “can be very useful at providing information at face or chest height” and could help people “avoid objects like low hanging branches that might not get detected by the cane or a guide dog”
According to BBC News, echolocation is a skill blind people can acquire and develop, just like learning a language. As Kolarik said, “Teaching echolocation skills could provide blind people with the means of exploring new places.”
1.What does “this special ability” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A.The ability to make noises in the dark.
B.The ability to bounce back off objects.
C.The ability to measure the distance quickly.
D.The ability to use sound waves to echolocate.
2.What do we know about Daniel Kish from the text?
A.He is fond of riding a bike and hiking alone.
B.He is called “Batman” because he looks like a bat.
C.He is able to hear echoes he produces from clicks.
D.He conducted the experiment to circulate echolocation.
3.What is Kolarik’s attitude towards the future use of echolocation in blind people?
A.Hopeful. B.Ambiguous.
C.Tolerant. D.Doubtful.
4.What’s the best title for the text?
A.Echolocation in Human World B.Finding New Way to “See”
C.A Very Special Batman D.A Breakthrough in Echoing
My father loves his garden. He planted some seeds in it. But at that time, I didn’t understand why working in the dirt excited him so much.
Unfortunately, in early May, my father was seriously injured in an accident. He had to stay in bed for a while. My mother had several business trips, so she couldn’t take care of the garden. I didn’t want my father to worry, so I said that I would take care of his garden until he recovered. I assumed that the little plants would continue to grow as long as they had water, and luckily it rained fairly often, so I didn’t think much about the garden.
One Saturday morning, my father said to me, “Christine, the vegetables should be about ready to be picked. Let’s have a salad today!” I went out to the garden and was upset to see that many of the lettuce leaves and carrots had been half eaten by bugs. There were hundreds of bugs all over them!
I panicked for a moment but then I quietly went to the nearest store to buy some vegetables.
When I gave the salad to him, he said, “Oh, Christine, what a beautiful salad! I can’t believe the carrots are this big already. You must be taking very good care of my garden.” I felt a little bit guilty.
Coming home, my mother saw the bag from the supermarket in the kitchen. I was embarrassed and I admitted, “Dad wanted a salad, but the garden was a disaster. I didn’t want to disappoint him, so I went to the store.” She laughed but promised to help me in the garden and weeks later I was finally able to pick some.
I carefully made a salad and took it to my father. He looked at it with a hint of a smile. “Christine, the carrots are smaller in this salad, but they taste better.”
Now, I better understand how putting a lot of effort into caring for something can help you appreciate the results more, however small they may be. Perhaps this was one of the reasons for my father’s love of gardening.
1.Why did Christine originally promise she would do the gardening?
A.She was asked by her father to do it.
B.She was interested in growing vegetables.
C.She knew it was important to her father.
D.She wanted to improve her gardening skills.
2.Which of the following was a problem in the garden?
A.Insects destroyed the lettuce and carrots.
B.Animals often dug holes in the garden.
C.The plants were given too much water.
D.The vegetables were marked incorrectly.
3.Why could Christine secretly make the salad from store-bought vegetables?
A.Her mother helped her to buy the vegetables.
B.Her mother regularly helped her to make a spray.
C.Her father couldn’t see the garden’s progress.
D.Her father went on a business trip at that time.
4.What did Christine learn through her experience of gardening?
A.Always get ready for a rainy day.
B.Don’t be disappointed by bugs.
C.Working alone produces results.
D.Hard work can often be rewarding.
It's easy to get defeated completely by something negative in your daily life. Give these apps a try if you want to be more positive instead of being negative in your daily life.
Shine
Shine is a text messaging service based on the idea that sometimes you need some external phrases to guide your internal positive thinking.
Visit the website, and you'll have the ability to sign up to receive a daily text message ——all you need to provide is a first name and a phone number. Then you'll receive one message per day with inspirational quotes from successful people from Monday through Friday.
Kwippy
In many cases, statements that come from other people can be more powerful than ones you make to yourself. That's where Kwippy comes in.
The app Kwippy has a positive, lively community focused on fun while keeping negativity out. It is a new kind of social media platform that will send you random challenges throughout the day, prompting you to take a photo of something in your nearby environment.
ThinkUp
If you're feeling confident and good about your place in life, download the app, come up with some positive statements about yourself and record them for future generations. If you're feeling less creative or don't know what to say, don,t worry 一 the app also has a list of shared positive statements that you can choose from.
Smiling Mind
Smiling Mind, a nonprofit organization, was founded by and is currently operated by psychologists and educators. Everything there is supported by scientific evidence. The app is free to use but you can make a donation if you want to continue supporting their efforts, displaying friendly and thoughtful acts to others.
In the app, you'll find different choices, which can help you remove negative thoughts and focus on the positivity of the present moments.
1.Which app makes people feel encouraged regularly?
A.Shine. B.Kwippy.
C.ThinkUp. D.Smiling Mind.
2.Who is Kwippy suitable for?
A.Those who need to face a big life challenge.
B.Those who look for a friendly neighborhood.
C.Those who long for a great sense of belonging.
D.Those who want to live an enjoyable social life.
3.What is the purpose of the article?
A.To show the power of some advanced apps.
B.To introduce some apps for avoiding people feeling down.
C.To compare the advantages of some apps.
D.To list the wide usage of apps in our daily life.
你居住的社区是个国际化程度很高的地方，为了确保与来自各个国家的外国朋友的有效沟通，社区发起了英语志愿者招募活动。假如你是学生李华，希望能成为其中一员。请按要求用英文给社区写一封申请信，内容包括： 1.个人情况；2.自身优势； 3.服务承诺。
注意：1.词数 100 左右； 2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；3.开头和结尾已为你写好，不计入总词数。
Dear Sir/Madam,
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours faithfully,
Li Hua
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文，文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处，每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删改或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（Λ），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Dear John,
I was very happy to receive your e- mail in that you asked me about my life. As a Senior 3 student, I was now working very hard to preparing for the National College Entrance Examination. In class, I listen to the teachers attentively and take notes careful. Out off class, I take an active part in various sport to keep healthy, which, I believe, is very important for my study.
Both my teachers and parents give me many support. With their help and encouragement, I have been made great progress and been able to build up our confidence. I have decided to attend medical university.
Best wishes,
Yours，
Mary
It was a freezing day when I came across her at some point on my life course. She was a small woman,_______to catch the bus at a deserted bus stop.
“Where are you going now?” the woman asked.
Well, I don’t know. I just want to see what it will be like at the___________. You know I ___________it all. We were going to get ___________after four years’ ups and downs. And he came one day, with nothing to say, just to show me a ___________on his finger.”
The woman gave a ___________of sympathy. She seemed to well understand my pain. “Now, do you want to _______my life story while we’re waiting for the bus?” the woman asked me in a low voice. I gave her a(n) _______ look and nodded my head.
“Exactly thirty five years ago, my husband took me and my three children to America. The moment we arrived, he left us ___________with a wish for good luck, to ____________his own happiness. Yet how could I ________my three children in a strange land, with no money, no relatives and a(n)____________ heart? Then I took the kids to the beach one afternoon. However, the kids were scared and they cried ____________. Their desperation suddenly woke me up from a long nightmare. How____________ I was!”
She continued, “I hugged them tightly, feeling a sudden strength ____________me. Then, I did all the things that brought me ____________a penny. Days in, days out, we ____________each other to gather enough encouragement to go ahead. My kids grew up into good, responsible citizens. Later, I found a man with the same pain. I feel ____________ has paid me off.”
The woman stopped for a while. She ____________my eyes and whispered in my ears, “Now stand up, little girl. Don’t go to the terminal because there’s nothing to see. Why don’t you get cheered up and enjoy the __________on the way?”
1.A.pretending B.designing C.waiting D.trying
2.A.stop B.road C.place D.terminal
3.A.lost B.made C.abandoned D.ruined
4.A.paid B.married C.promoted D.deserted
5.A.flower B.gift C.ring D.necklace
6.A.touch B.whistle C.reply D.sigh
7.A.tell B.hear C.cover D.make
8.A.blank B.cold C.innocent D.fresh
9.A.out B.off C.over D.behind
10.A.rescue B.seek C.share D.own
11.A.shelter B.educate C.command D.survive
12.A.delighted B.frightened C.broken D.excited
13.A.deliberately B.wildly C.causally D.occasionally
14.A.curious B.proud C.brave D.selfish
15.A.inside B.alongside C.beneath D.over
16.A.also B.almost C.even D.still
17.A.fought against B.argued with C.complained to D.depended on
18.A.life B.career C.friendship D.money
19.A.glared at B.looked into C.searched for D.saw through
20.A.conversation B.vehicle C.scenery D.love
